MipTV ups activity for 50th anni

TV mart adds more premieres to red carpet events

Just when industryites were starting to think MipTV had lost its momentum, Reed Midem is giving the 50-year-old Cannes-set mart a makeover, ramping up the creative and red-carpet events with high-profile premieres, including Netflix’s “Hemlock Grove.”

The lineup of the April 8 to 11 edition was unveiled on Monday at Reed Midem’s new headquarters, just outside Paris.

It’s already attracted DreamWorks and The Weinstein Co., which had previously only attended the Mipcom TV mart in fall. They are among 11,000 participants from 100 countries that have registered, 11% up on last year.

“Hemlock Grove” exec producer Eli Roth and star Famke Janssen will be in Cannes to walk the red carpet and promote the Gothic thriller. Produced and repped by Hollywood-based Gaumont Intl. Television, “Hemlock” will bow on Netflix this spring.

As previously announced, Starz’s “Da Vinci’s Demons” will unspool on opening night with showrunner David S. Goyer and thesps Tom Riley and Laura Haddock in attendance. Show is due to bow on Starz on April 12.

Franco-German net Arte’s epic “Odysseus,” 12 hourlongs based on Homer’s “The Odyssey,” will also debut. It is co-produced by Gaul’s Making Prods. and GMT and distributed by Studio Hamburg in Germany and 100% Distribution, a joint venture between Making Prods. and Gaul’s Tetra Media Studios.

“The world premieres are becoming more and more important for buyers and it is also the opportunity for all participants to look at content on a bigscreen. Premieres allow sales companies to create some buzz and anticipation from TV audiences,” said Laurine Garaude, head of Reed Midem’s TV division.

MipTV will spotlight Israeli skein “Prisoners of War” (Hatufim) and its American redo “Homeland” with a keynote by Gideon Raff and Howard Gordon. Raff created “Prisoners of War” and co-wrote “Homeland” with Gordon and Alex Gansa.

Discovery Communications’ prexy-CEO David Zaslav has joined the roster of keynote speakers. He will discuss the global content environment, recent international mergers and acquisition activity (notably in France), and his growth strategy for Discovery.

The mart has bumped up international pitch sessions and events dedicated to technology and new platforms. More than 500 VOD buyers have already registered, a MipTV record, said Garaude.

Other innovations include screenings of original online content, highlighting a selection of five YouTube channels around the world.

MipTV will also throw an Intl. Market Leader Awards gala honoring top players.

Garaude said MipTV will attract more brands and advertising agencies with two events: a brand of the year kudo and a new brand & content masterclass. There will also be a keynote by Red Bull Media House chief commercial officer Alexander Koppel and Austrian skydiver Felix Baumgartner, whose record-breaking dive was sponsored by Red Bull.

To celebrate its 50th anniversary, MipTV is joining forces with the United Nations to organize Education First, a confab moderated by Gordon Brown, former U.K. prime minister and the United Nations’ special envoy for global education, on April 10.

Event will discuss ways to give children better access to education, improve the quality of learning and create a campaign to support the right to go to school.

“Today, television can be used not only for entertainment — it can support and drive social good by promoting the movement to educate the 60 million children in the world who receive no schooling at all,” said Garaude.

Meanwhile, Reed Midem is bringing back MipCube, a confab dedicated to branded content and innovation in TV, for a second edition. It will take place at the Palais, simultaneously with MipTV.